Wrangles lowering leadership status

NAIROBI: One of the defining attributes of leadership in Kenya today is intolerance. This intolerance is exhibited right from the highest office in the land to the lowest; the result of which is polarisation of the country along political party lines.

The Mombasa County Assembly last week degenerated into fisticuffs after members of county assembly from across the political divide failed to agree on a motion aimed at impeaching Speaker Thadius Rajwayi. It did not help matters when leaders, who know the importance attached to the mace as a symbol of authority, proceeded to break it.

While the motivation behind the change of title from Councillor to Member of County Assembly was to signify a clean break from the past where councillors were more famous for fights in chambers than anything else, nothing has changed. Former councillors are remembered as leaders who exhibited very little patriotism and intelligence.

They threw caution to the wind and constantly engaged each other in brawls, wreaking havoc on anything they could lay their hands on.Two senior leaders in Mombasa, Governor Ali Hassan Joho and the Member of Parliament for Nyali, Hezron Awiti, were said to be at the centre of the Mombasa chaos as they fought for control of the assembly.

The point the belligerents miss is that leadership is defined by the ability to embrace diversity, tolerate criticism and accept other people’s point of view, because at the end of the day that is what democracy is all about.

In civilized societies where leaders come from different backgrounds, political persuasions and subscribe to different ideologies, it is necessary for leaders to come together, share their concerns and where necessary resort to orderly voting to determine an outcome.

It is then that leaders are said to be serving the interests of those who elected them.